[video]

[ninjamanager]

[the feed turns on to show Charles standing in a HUGE room somewhere in Mordhaus, stone walls and flying buttresses vaulting up into forever. various crates are stacked around, some ceiling-high, and he's standing next to a massive, burly man dressed like an executioner in a cut-off t-shirt with a clipboard]

... I see. And you found them behind the cases of pickups from EMG? ... Well, they never did sell. My fault, really. The boys hit the big time right near the end of the craze, and it ... died faster than it was projected to.

[he sighs.]

Fantastic. What the hell am I supposed to do with five hundred crates of assorted Dethklok POGs?

Comments

[powerofpink]

[Kendrix cringes]

The fad's worn out by my time too. I think the whole making them into accessories sounds like a good idea. Otherwise, maybe make a game out of it? Put codes on the back that kids have to collect in order to play some kind of videogame?

[ninjamanager]

... Turn a collectible into a more relevant collectible. I like it. It'd have to be a cheap game, though, to offset the original cost of making the pogs. Maybe an iPhone app ...

[powerofpink]

I think the merchandising itself would help make up for it. I mean, the most popular apps I'm seeing have graphics pretty much out of the late '90s.

[ninjamanager]

It's true. Hmm. Not a bad idea. I'll see if our developers can come up with something to make it fly.

.... You, uh. Wouldn't be willing to document that you gave this idea to me willingly, would you? No hard feelings, it's just that, well. Royalties are a pretty big issue over here. And things being how they are, I'd have no way of getting them to you.

[he also does not want you to have them]

[powerofpink]

Absolutely. Besides, I'm more of a researcher anyway. I'm used to handing over my work and letting the head of the department write his name on it.

[ninjamanager]

Excellent. So you're more of an R&D person to start with, anyway. Thank you, Miss, uhh...?

[yes, Charles, please, remember your social manners.]

[powerofpink]

Pretty much. Kendrix Morgan.

[ninjamanager]

Charles Foster Ofdensen. A pleasure. ... Are you new to the network?

[powerofpink]

I've been here for a little while now, but we haven't run into each other before now, I guess. Plus, I've been cooped up in the lab recently, so I'm catching up now.

[ninjamanager]

What sort of research do you do, if you don't mind my asking?

[powerofpink]

For the most part, different technologies that can help adapt for life on long-term spaceflight, including biology and engineering. We've also started studying a couple of discoveries we've made on different planets.

[ninjamanager]

Soooo, ah, space travel is actually a thing where you're from then. That's interesting.

[powerofpink]

We're a little farther behind in a lot of other things, but our space program's doing pretty well.

[ninjamanager]

"A lot of other things", huh? Why so much emphasis on space?

[powerofpink]

Well, my world has been invaded by aliens. For the past six years, actually. We just got off a massive invasion. This is part escape and part self-defense. Everybody on staff has been trained for military duties if it comes to it.